Marriage Seduction Addiction

Chapter 488 My Younger Sister

Tang Xu belatedly realized what Yan Shiyu meant by "empathy".

When two people are intimately close, their hearts and pulses seem to beat in sync, a resonance from body to soul. It's a real, certain feeling that both can clearly perceive... a deep empathy.

That was the only "empathy" he wanted to share with her.

When Tang Xu calmed down from the huge tremor, she was still in a state of turmoil. She leaned against Yan Shiyu's chest, listening to his clear and steady heartbeat, but she still couldn't help but look up at him.

Yan Shiyu's gaze also happened to be directed at her.

Even though the two were still in the most intimate position, Tang Xu couldn't help but reach out and hug him tightly.

Yan Shiyu seemed to sense her worry, gently patted her back, and then whispered, "It's alright, go to sleep."

Tang Xu held him for a long time before finally responding softly and closing her eyes.

Tang Xu didn't know whether Yan Shiyu had fallen asleep or not. She only knew that when she saw the sky gradually brightening outside through the window screen, she finally couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep.

When Tang Xu woke up again, it was already broad daylight, and Yan Shiyu was no longer by her side.

Tang Xu instantly woke up and reached out to touch the blankets beside her; they were already cold.

She quickly sat up, wrapped her robe around herself, and was about to leave the room when she suddenly heard a noise coming from the backyard outside the window. Tang Xu immediately stopped, pulled back the curtain, and saw the man in the backyard.

He had his back to the window, holding a shovel, and was digging in the soil under a tree.

Tang Xu's heart suddenly calmed down.

She stopped rushing and slowly tidied herself up before going downstairs.

Downstairs, Gao Yan was standing by the window with a cup of coffee in his hand, watching Yan Shiyu digging in the backyard with concern. Hearing the noise, he turned to look at Tang Xu and said, "Miss Tang, there is breakfast on the table, or if you would like something else, I will have it brought over."

"No need, I'll just eat something simple." Tang Xu said, glancing outside in the direction of his gaze. Then she suddenly added, "Let someone send some flowers over. He dug such a big hole; it would be a shame not to plant some flowers."

After saying that, Tang Xu turned and walked towards the dining table.

Gao Yan paused for a moment, then couldn't help but turn around and follow.

He certainly knew what Yan Shiyu was digging for, and Tang Xu obviously knew as well, but it was precisely because he knew that Gao Yan had some worries that he couldn't shake off.

He followed Tang Xu to the dining table, and after sitting down, he said, "Miss Tang, I have received news that Jiang Beiheng and Jiang Muchen are already preparing to return to China."

Tang Xu paused, calculated the days, and then said, "It's about time."

“What if…” Gao Yan seemed reluctant to bring this up, frowning before continuing, “What if Miss Ji is with them?”

Tang Xu took a spoonful of egg, which had gone cold. She frowned slightly, swallowed it with difficulty, and then sighed softly, saying, "No matter what happens, we can only accept it. So much has already happened, one more won't make a difference."

Gao Yan was taken aback, then realized something and looked at Tang Xu, "Have you received any news? Did Mr. Lu say anything?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Xu couldn't help but sigh again.

She had been away from Los Angeles for several days, but she had been paying close attention to the situation there. Ji Yan hadn't replied to any of the messages she sent, while Lu Xingyan sent messages every day, but the words she sent were full of sorrow and dejection.

These days, Ji Yan still stays in Jiang Muchen's apartment every day, not even giving him a chance to talk or meet, let alone anything else.

Tang Xu had also asked Lu Xingyan the same question that Gao Yan had just asked.

Ji Yan sees Jiang Muchen every day. What will he do if she really goes back to the Jiang family?
Lu Xingyan's answer was: "Whether she is from the Yan family or the Jiang family, whether she is Ji Yan or Xu Xingyang, it doesn't really matter to me, as long as she is herself."

“But if she really returns to the Jiang family, it means she hasn’t forgiven Yan Shiyu yet, and similarly, you haven’t been forgiven either,” Tang Xu said.

Lu Xingyan scoffed at this and said, "It's as if you've been forgiven."

This was Lu Xingyan's usual way of speaking to her, but Tang Xu still sensed the unease in his words.

Yes, even dragging her into the mess wouldn't put him at ease in the slightest—it only meant that she was drifting further and further away from their world.

“I’m not in a hurry,” Tang Xu replied. “I’ve already prepared myself mentally. I know some things won’t happen so quickly, and I’m willing to wait patiently. But do you have that patience?”

Lu Xingyan clearly didn't have the patience for this, and as if her secret had been touched, she hung up the phone immediately.

Today, when the topic came up again, Tang Xu still didn't have a definite answer in his heart, so he couldn't answer Gao Yan.

When Tang Xu walked into the backyard again, Yan Shiyu happened to dig up his own things.

In a pit nearly half a meter deep, lay a matte black iron box, without a logo or pattern, rough, cold, and covered in rust.

It looks just like the person who buried it.

Yan Shiyu knelt by the pit, staring at the box, and didn't move for a moment.

Tang Xu hadn't expected the box to be buried so deep, and couldn't help but ask softly, "When was it buried?"

Yan Shiyu paused for a moment before turning to look at her and replying, "Before I met you."

Tang Xu immediately understood what kind of feelings he had when he buried the iron box filled with his thoughts so deep.

That was the moment when all his emotions and beliefs collapsed.

Yes, even when he heard the news of Ji Yan's death, he did not waver, stubbornly believing that she was still alive and that the two siblings would meet again someday.

So the box remained with him for two or three years after he heard the news of her death.

During that time, he was probably still writing letters to her.

He didn't expect her to see it; he simply believed that as long as he continued writing, it meant that the person receiving the letter was still alive.

Even at some unknown, remote corner of the world.

She must still be alive.

Perhaps during that time, this was the only obsession that kept him going.

However, when this obsession also shattered, when he could no longer hold on, when the emotions entrusted to this iron box had nowhere to be conveyed, he chose to bury it underground, seal everything away, and exile himself.

What happened after that is unnecessary to recount, but until today, this iron box has finally had the opportunity to see the light of day again.

Tang Xu patiently stood aside and waited for Yan Shiyu to lift the box from the ground.

Yan Shiyu remained motionless for a long time, and she did not urge him. After a while, she simply pointed to the grass next to her and said, "Later, you can dig up all the soil around this tree and plant a circle of Christmas roses under it. Then we can come back and see how they bloom at Christmas."

Yan Shiyu seemed to finally wake up from some kind of emotion. He stared at the spot she pointed to, then turned to look at her and smiled, replying, "Okay." After saying that, he finally bent down and reached out to lift the iron box from the ground.

The moment the long-sealed box was finally opened, what appeared before my eyes were many different sizes of messy, scattered pieces of paper, all sorts of colors, as if all kinds of paper were there: draft paper, hotel notes, the backs of discarded documents, and even napkins... Years of burial had caused some of the paper to fade, and some of the writing had become blurred, with the writing faintly visible through the back of the paper.

Tang Xu didn't deliberately try to spy, but she still immediately noticed a few words peeking out from the back of a napkin—

Nothing much to do today, the sun is shining brightly. Don't worry.

In an instant, Tang Xu felt as if she had been hit hard by something, and it took her a while to recover.

She never dared to inquire in detail about what kind of life he had lived during those years, but she knew how dark and hopeless those days must have been.

Even so, he would still write such nonchalant words on the letter paper—

This nonchalant attitude was meant for his beloved, only younger sister.

He didn't want her to see any suffering.

All he hoped for in her life was a peaceful and happy life.

But I never imagined that peace and happiness in this world would be so hard to come by.

Yan Shiyu gently brushed the letters aside, without turning to look at any of them, and simply said, "They haven't weathered yet."

"It's still early," Tang Xu said. "Besides, even if the letter paper weathers away, the feelings will never fade."

After saying that, she looked at Yan Shiyu and said, "How about you give me these letters? I'll pass them on to her. These are all the letters you wrote to her. I won't read them, but she should know them all."

This was originally the purpose of their visit, and it was also the plan he proposed. But at this very moment, Tang Xu took on this task himself.

Because I know all too well that for someone like him who doesn't show his emotions, getting to this point has been extremely difficult—

Even lifting that box out of the ground required courage, let alone bringing the emotions buried inside back to the light of day.

For him, it was by no means an easy task.

She knew, and he knew too.

So Yan Shiyu nodded slowly and answered cooperatively, "Okay."

He didn't look through the letters anymore, but Tang Xu sorted them out one by one, and when he counted them, there were nearly 400 letters.

Tang Xu found a large pile of envelopes and stuffed the letters one by one into each envelope.

She didn't even look at the date; she just randomly picked whichever letter was which and handed it to Gao Yan to deliver.

Day 1, one letter.

The next day, a letter arrived.

On the third day, another letter arrived.

She followed this routine of sending one letter a day, delivering the letter to where it should have arrived many years ago.

Until... Ji Yan returned to Huai City with Jiang Beiheng and Jiang Muchen.

……

On the day Ji Yan returned to Huai City with the Jiang family father and son, Yan Shiyu and Tang Xu also returned to Huai City.

When they left Huai City, it was just as public opinion was brewing about their relationship. Now, the Jiang family father and son returned to Huai City on the same day as them, and media outlets have been staking out the airport since the early hours of the morning, trying to interview the parties involved as soon as possible.

Disappointingly, both parties involved seemed to have used special channels and did not appear at the airport, so naturally no one took any photos or received any response.

However, even though Jiang Beiheng had been living a secluded life since stepping down from his frontline position, Jiang Muchen was still the president of the Jiang Group and was bound to appear in public. Therefore, the media, who failed to stake out the airport, immediately changed locations and continued to stake out the Jiang Group headquarters building early the next morning.

To everyone's surprise, as soon as the stakeout began, someone from Jiang's public relations department came out to serve tea and water and invited all the media personnel present into the Jiang's Building.

Thus, a stakeout turned into a press conference.

When Jiang Muchen appeared, all the media present swarmed forward, bombarding him with questions about the relationship between Yan Shiyu and Tang Xu, waiting for Jiang Muchen's response.

Jiang Muchen waited until everyone calmed down before slowly speaking: "The reason I am here today is because I have some important news to share with you all."

Upon hearing this, everyone present held their breath, awaiting his important message.

Immediately afterwards, a photo appeared on the large screen behind Jiang Muchen—

A photograph of a woman.

The media representatives present exchanged glances, and after confirming that the woman was someone none of them recognized, they immediately began to bombard each other with questions:

What is the relationship between this lady and Mr. Jiang?

"Are you Mr. Jiang's new girlfriend?"

Why did Mr. Jiang suddenly announce her news? Was it because Yan Shiyu and Tang Xu went public with their relationship?

What is Mr. Jiang's view on the relationship between Yan Shiyu and Tang Xu?

In an instant, the topic was brought back to its original state, but Jiang Muchen's face remained expressionless. He sat there and waited until everyone quieted down before slowly speaking: "This is my sister."

Everyone present was immediately stunned.

Someone quickly realized what was happening and asked, "Is she your biological sister?"

“Yes, my younger sister,” Jiang Muchen said.

The scene immediately erupted in an uproar.

Under a new round of questioning, Jiang Muchen slowly said, "From now on, our Jiang family has one more person. Please congratulate me and our Jiang family. Thank you everyone."

After saying this, Jiang Muchen got up and left the scene, ignoring the reporters' persistent questions without pausing for even a second.

Although Jiang Muchen only said a few words, those words still became breaking news, quickly sweeping across the trending topics lists of major media outlets.

"Jiang family's illegitimate daughter exposed! Jiang Muchen personally confirms her identity!"

When the push notification popped up, Tang Xu was staring blankly at the chat box on her phone. Before she could even process what was happening, her hand had already tapped it.

Then she saw the photos of Jiang Muchen and Ji Yan behind him, as well as the entire report.